‘Biden better than truant Trump’: Israel's ex-PM Ehud Olmert at Firstpost Defence Summit

Former prime minister of Israel Ehud Olmert, who led his country in the Lebanese War, took a dig at ex-US president Donald Trump as he, for all intents and purposes, called the latter a force that could endanger the entire world if he were to be re-elected to the White House.

Olmert was speaking at the Firstpost Defence Summit in New Delhi in a session moderated by Palki Sharma, the news platform’s managing editor.

“Trump is endangering the entire world,” Olmert said, adding, “If the choice is between Biden and Trump, I think… good for America is one who may not have all the energies to be what it takes to be a US president, but at least doesn’t have the energies of the other…”

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Olmert said the US had not failed altogether on the global front, especially the Middle East.

Praising US President Joe Biden, Olmert said, “Biden has manifested a remarkable support for Israel, but also support for what I think is essential to building a new axis in Middle East…”

The veteran Israeli politicians underlined that “radical Islamists” in the form of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad, supported by an aggressive and extremist Iran, was the root problem for lack of peace in the region.

“What is clear at this point is that the enemy of peace in Middle East is radical Islamist forces and Iranians. Strategically, Western forces led by the USA with the participation of Europeans, can support Israel and oppose Hamas and Islamic Jihad.”

Olmert, on the other hand, also stressed that this coalition of democratic governments could also pressure Israel into letting go off the rage that it has accumulated in the wake of the October 7 Hamas attack.

The former Israeli premier was also analytical of the US’ position in the world that has been fraught. “Can’t say America has failed completely, but it is very difficult to run this new process when you have a quite aggressive and unfriendly Russian government and a radical Iran and China that is playing to make the most for itself at the cost of all the stability we are trying to achieve.”